Managing application access of a media playback system

ABSTRACT

Examples described herein may include a playback device receiving, from a control device, a validation-key that includes an application identifier corresponding to a controller application. The playback device may create a session identifier and transmit the session identifier to the control device. The playback device may receive, from the control device, a playback request comprising the session identifier and a playback command. The playback device may determine that the session identifier is valid and then execute the playback command. A computing system may receive identification information related to a controller application and generate the validation-key based on the controller application meeting at least one quality-control metric. The controller application may receive the validation-key from the computing system.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/700,676, titled “Managing Application Access of a Media PlaybackSystem,” filed Dec. 2, 2019, and currently pending; U.S. applicationSer. No. 16/700,676 is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.14/330,754, titled “Managing Application Access of a Media PlaybackSystem,” filed Jul. 14, 2014, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,498,833 onDec. 3, 2019. The entire contents of the Ser. Nos. 16/700,676 and14/330,754 applications are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tomethods, systems, products, features, services, and other elementsdirected to media playback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Options for accessing and listening to digital audio in an out-loudsetting were limited until in 2003, when SONOS, Inc. filed for one ofits first patent applications, entitled “Method for Synchronizing AudioPlayback between Multiple Networked Devices,” and began offering a mediaplayback system for sale in 2005. The Sonos Wireless HiFi System enablespeople to experience music from many sources via one or more networkedplayback devices. Through a software control application installed on asmartphone, tablet, or computer, one can play what he or she wants inany room that has a networked playback device. Additionally, using thecontroller, for example, different songs can be streamed to each roomwith a playback device, rooms can be grouped together for synchronousplayback, or the same song can be heard in all rooms synchronously.

Given the ever growing interest in digital media, there continues to bea need to develop consumer-accessible technologies to further enhancethe listening experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologymay be better understood with regard to the following description,appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an example media playback system configuration in whichcertain embodiments may be practiced;

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device;

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device;

FIG. 4 shows an example controller interface;

FIG. 5 shows an example flow diagram of an example method;

FIG. 6 shows an example flow diagram of an example method;

FIG. 7 shows an example flow diagram of an example method;

FIG. 8 shows an example network configuration; and

FIG. 9 shows another example network configuration.

The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating example embodiments,but it is understood that the inventions are not limited to thearrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

I. Overview

In examples herein, protocols via which a media application may requestand receive certifications for accessing and managing a media playbacksystem are provided. The media application may be an applicationprovided by a service provider via which media content from the serviceprovider may be accessed. For instance, the media application may be athird party application rather than a native controller application thatis dedicated to the media playback system. As such, the protocols mayinclude comparing the application's operation performance to variousquality-control metrics or benchmarks to determine whether theapplication should be allowed to access one or more media playbacksystems. If the application's performance is determined to satisfy thequality-control metrics or benchmarks, the application may be providedcertification data that allows the application to access or control theone or more media playback devices.

In some examples, media playback systems may be controlled by a controldevice. In some situations the control device may run a controllerapplication that is dedicated to the media playback system. In othersituations, the control device may be a device that operates independentof the media playback system. Such a device may include a smartphone,tablet computer, or the like. As such, the device may include a mediaapplication that at times may operate to obtain media independent of themedia playback system, while at other times the media application mayoperate as a controller application for the media playback system.

In some contexts, it may be desirable for the manufacturer of the mediaplayback system to dictate or otherwise monitor what media applicationsmay be used to control the media playback system. That is, it may bedesirable for the manufacturer to enforce a form of quality-control overapplications that may be used to control its media playback systems.

In practice, before a media application may be used to control a mediaplayback system, the media application may first be evaluated to ensurethat it meets certain quality-control metrics. (A media application maybe referred to herein as a controller application when the mediaapplication is used to control a media playback system.) For example, acomputing device associated with an entity involved in developing and/ordistributing a media application (e.g. a media service provider or anindependent application developer) may send to a media system server arequest for a validation-key. The request may identify the mediaapplication. The media system server may be associated with andcommunicatively coupled to one or more media playback systems. Based onthe received information, the server may determine that the mediaapplication meets at least one quality-control metric. (In some cases,the media application may undergo testing and/or certificationprocedures to determine that the media application meets the at leastone quality-control metric.) The server may send to the computing devicea validation-key that includes (i) an application identifiercorresponding to the media application and/or (ii) a system identifiercorresponding to the media playback system.

The computing device may subsequently provide the validation-key to acontrol device configured to run the media application to control themedia playback system. Then, the control device may send thevalidation-key to the media playback system (e.g., a playback device ofthe media playback system) and receive from the media playback system asession identifier corresponding to a playback device of the mediaplayback system. The session identifier may enable the control device tomanage, to some extent, media playback of media content by the playbackdevice.

After the control device receives the session identifier, the controldevice may send to the media playback system a playback request thatincludes the session identifier and a playback command. If the sessionidentifier provided by the control device is valid, the media playbacksystem may carry out the playback command (e.g., load a playback queueof the playback device for playback of one or more media items).

In one aspect, a method is provided. The method involves receiving, by aplayback device of a media playback system, a validation-key, whereinthe validation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; based on at least the application identifier,creating a session identifier corresponding to the playback device;transmitting the session identifier; receiving a playback requestcomprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) a playback commandindicating a command related to playback of media by the playbackdevice; determining that the received session identifier is valid; andbased on determining that the received session identifier is valid,executing the playback command.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a playback device to cause the playbackdevice to perform functions. The functions include receiving avalidation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; based on at least theapplication identifier, creating a session identifier corresponding tothe playback device; transmitting the session identifier; receiving aplayback request comprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) aplayback command indicating a command related to playback of media bythe playback device; determining that the received session identifier isvalid; and based on determining that the received session identifier isvalid, executing the playback command.

In another aspect, a playback device is provided. The playback deviceincludes a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable mediumstoring instructions that when executed by the playback device cause theplayback device to perform functions comprising: receiving avalidation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; based on at least theapplication identifier, creating a session identifier corresponding tothe playback device; transmitting the session identifier; receiving aplayback request comprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) aplayback command indicating a command related to playback of media bythe playback device; determining that the received session identifier isvalid; and based on determining that the received session identifier isvalid, executing the playback command.

In another aspect, the disclosure includes a method that includestransmitting, by a computing device communicatively coupled to a mediaplayback system, a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprisesan application identifier corresponding to a controller applicationthrough which one or more media items are added to a playback queue;thereafter, receiving a session identifier corresponding to a playbackdevice of the media playback system; and transmitting a playback requestcomprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) a playback commandindicating a command related to playback of media by the playbackdevice.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a computing device communicatively coupled toa media playback system to cause the computing device to performfunctions. The functions include transmitting a validation-key, whereinthe validation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; thereafter, receiving a session identifiercorresponding to a playback device of the media playback system; andtransmitting a playback request comprising (i) the session identifierand (ii) a playback command indicating a command related to playback ofmedia by the playback device.

In yet another aspect, a computing device is provided. The computingdevice includes a processor and a non-transitory computer-readablemedium storing instructions that when executed by the computing devicecause the computing device to perform functions comprising: transmittinga validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; thereafter, receivinga session identifier corresponding to a playback device of the mediaplayback system; and transmitting a playback request comprising (i) thesession identifier and (ii) a playback command indicating a commandrelated to playback of media by the playback device.

In another aspect, the disclosure includes a method that comprisesreceiving, by a computing system communicatively coupled to a mediaplayback system, a validation-key request comprising identificationinformation related to a controller application through which one ormore media items are added to a playback queue; determining that thecontroller application meets at least one quality-control metric; basedon determining that the controller application meets the at least onequality-control metric, generating a validation-key, wherein thevalidation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding to theapplication; and transmitting a certification message indicating thatthe controller application meets the at least one quality-controlmetric, wherein the certification message comprises the validation-key.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a computing device communicatively coupled toa media playback system to cause the computing device to performfunctions. The functions include receiving a validation-key requestcomprising identification information related to a controllerapplication through which one or more media items are added to aplayback queue; determining that the controller application meets atleast one quality-control metric; based on determining that thecontroller application meets the at least one quality-control metric,generating a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises anapplication identifier corresponding to the application; andtransmitting a certification message indicating that the controllerapplication meets the at least one quality-control metric, wherein thecertification message comprises the validation-key.

In yet another aspect, a computing device communicatively coupled to amedia playback system is provided. The computing device includes aprocessor and a non-transitory computer-readable medium storinginstructions that when executed by the computing device cause thecomputing device to perform functions comprising: receiving avalidation-key request comprising identification information related toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; determining that the controller application meetsat least one quality-control metric; based on determining that thecontroller application meets the at least one quality-control metric,generating a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises anapplication identifier corresponding to the application; andtransmitting a certification message indicating that the controllerapplication meets the at least one quality-control metric, wherein thecertification message comprises the validation-key.

It will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that thisdisclosure includes numerous other embodiments. While some examplesdescribed herein may refer to functions performed by given actors suchas “users” and/or other entities, it should be understood that this isfor purposes of explanation only. The claims should not be interpretedto require action by any such example actor unless explicitly requiredby the language of the claims themselves.

II. Example Operating Environment

FIG. 1 shows an example configuration of a media playback system 100 inwhich one or more embodiments disclosed herein may be practiced orimplemented. The media playback system 100 as shown is associated withan example home environment having several rooms and spaces, such as forexample, a master bedroom, an office, a dining room, and a living room.As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the media playback system 100includes playback devices 102-124, control devices 126 and 128, and awired or wireless network router 130.

Further discussions relating to the different components of the examplemedia playback system 100 and how the different components may interactto provide a user with a media experience may be found in the followingsections. While discussions herein may generally refer to the examplemedia playback system 100, technologies described herein are not limitedto applications within, among other things, the home environment asshown in FIG. 1. For instance, the technologies described herein may beuseful in environments where multi-zone audio may be desired, such as,for example, a commercial setting like a restaurant, mall or airport, avehicle like a sports utility vehicle (SUV), bus or car, a ship or boat,an airplane, and so on.

a. Example Playback Devices

FIG. 2 shows a functional block diagram of an example playback device200 that may be configured to be one or more of the playback devices102-124 of the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1. The playback device200 may include a processor 202, software components 204, memory 206,audio processing components 208, audio amplifier(s) 210, speaker(s) 212,and a network interface 214 including wireless interface(s) 216 andwired interface(s) 218. In one case, the playback device 200 may notinclude the speaker(s) 212, but rather a speaker interface forconnecting the playback device 200 to external speakers. In anothercase, the playback device 200 may include neither the speaker(s) 212 northe audio amplifier(s) 210, but rather an audio interface for connectingthe playback device 200 to an external audio amplifier or audio-visualreceiver.

In one example, the processor 202 may be a clock-driven computingcomponent configured to process input data according to instructionsstored in the memory 206. The memory 206 may be a tangiblecomputer-readable medium configured to store instructions executable bythe processor 202. For instance, the memory 206 may be data storage thatcan be loaded with one or more of the software components 204 executableby the processor 202 to achieve certain functions. In one example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 retrieving audio data froman audio source or another playback device. In another example, thefunctions may involve the playback device 200 sending audio data toanother device or playback device on a network. In yet another example,the functions may involve pairing of the playback device 200 with one ormore playback devices to create a multi-channel audio environment.

Certain functions may involve the playback device 200 synchronizingplayback of audio content with one or more other playback devices.During synchronous playback, a listener will preferably not be able toperceive time-delay differences between playback of the audio content bythe playback device 200 and the one or more other playback devices. U.S.Pat. No. 8,234,395 entitled, “System and method for synchronizingoperations among a plurality of independently clocked digital dataprocessing devices,” which is hereby incorporated by reference, providesin more detail some examples for audio playback synchronization amongplayback devices.

The memory 206 may further be configured to store data associated withthe playback device 200, such as one or more zones and/or zone groupsthe playback device 200 is a part of, audio sources accessible by theplayback device 200, or a playback queue that the playback device 200(or some other playback device) may be associated with. The data may bestored as one or more state variables that are periodically updated andused to describe the state of the playback device 200. The memory 206may also include the data associated with the state of the other devicesof the media system, and shared from time to time among the devices sothat one or more of the devices have the most recent data associatedwith the system. Other embodiments are also possible.

The audio processing components 208 may include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor (DSP), and soon. In one embodiment, one or more of the audio processing components208 may be a subcomponent of the processor 202. In one example, audiocontent may be processed and/or intentionally altered by the audioprocessing components 208 to produce audio signals. The produced audiosignals may then be provided to the audio amplifier(s) 210 foramplification and playback through speaker(s) 212. Particularly, theaudio amplifier(s) 210 may include devices configured to amplify audiosignals to a level for driving one or more of the speakers 212. Thespeaker(s) 212 may include an individual transducer (e.g., a “driver”)or a complete speaker system involving an enclosure with one or moredrivers. A particular driver of the speaker(s) 212 may include, forexample, a subwoofer (e.g., for low frequencies), a mid-range driver(e.g., for middle frequencies), and/or a tweeter (e.g., for highfrequencies). In some cases, each transducer in the one or more speakers212 may be driven by an individual corresponding audio amplifier of theaudio amplifier(s) 210. In addition to producing analog signals forplayback by the playback device 200, the audio processing components 208may be configured to process audio content to be sent to one or moreother playback devices for playback.

Audio content to be processed and/or played back by the playback device200 may be received from an external source, such as via an audioline-in input connection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audio line-inconnection) or the network interface 214.

The network interface 214 may be configured to facilitate a data flowbetween the playback device 200 and one or more other devices on a datanetwork. As such, the playback device 200 may be configured to receiveaudio content over the data network from one or more other playbackdevices in communication with the playback device 200, network deviceswithin a local area network, or audio content sources over a wide areanetwork such as the Internet. In one example, the audio content andother signals transmitted and received by the playback device 200 may betransmitted in the form of digital packet data containing an InternetProtocol (IP)-based source address and IP-based destination addresses.In such a case, the network interface 214 may be configured to parse thedigital packet data such that the data destined for the playback device200 is properly received and processed by the playback device 200.

As shown, the network interface 214 may include wireless interface(s)216 and wired interface(s) 218. The wireless interface(s) 216 mayprovide network interface functions for the playback device 200 towirelessly communicate with other devices (e.g., other playbackdevice(s), speaker(s), receiver(s), network device(s), control device(s)within a data network the playback device 200 is associated with) inaccordance with a communication protocol (e.g., any wireless standardincluding IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4Gmobile communication standard, and so on). The wired interface(s) 218may provide network interface functions for the playback device 200 tocommunicate over a wired connection with other devices in accordancewith a communication protocol (e.g., IEEE 802.3). While the networkinterface 214 shown in FIG. 2 includes both wireless interface(s) 216and wired interface(s) 218, the network interface 214 may in someembodiments include only wireless interface(s) or only wiredinterface(s).

In one example, the playback device 200 and one other playback devicemay be paired to play two separate audio components of audio content.For instance, playback device 200 may be configured to play a leftchannel audio component, while the other playback device may beconfigured to play a right channel audio component, thereby producing orenhancing a stereo effect of the audio content. The paired playbackdevices (also referred to as “bonded playback devices”) may further playaudio content in synchrony with other playback devices.

In another example, the playback device 200 may be sonicallyconsolidated with one or more other playback devices to form a single,consolidated playback device. A consolidated playback device may beconfigured to process and reproduce sound differently than anunconsolidated playback device or playback devices that are paired,because a consolidated playback device may have additional speakerdrivers through which audio content may be rendered. For instance, ifthe playback device 200 is a playback device designed to render lowfrequency range audio content (i.e. a subwoofer), the playback device200 may be consolidated with a playback device designed to render fullfrequency range audio content. In such a case, the full frequency rangeplayback device, when consolidated with the low frequency playbackdevice 200, may be configured to render only the mid and high frequencycomponents of audio content, while the low frequency range playbackdevice 200 renders the low frequency component of the audio content. Theconsolidated playback device may further be paired with a singleplayback device or yet another consolidated playback device.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. presently offers (or has offered)for sale certain playback devices including a “PLAY:1,” “PLAY:3,”“PLAY:5,” “PLAYBAR,” “CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any otherpast, present, and/or future playback devices may additionally oralternatively be used to implement the playback devices of exampleembodiments disclosed herein. Additionally, it is understood that aplayback device is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 2 orto the SONOS product offerings. For example, a playback device mayinclude a wired or wireless headphone. In another example, a playbackdevice may include or interact with a docking station for personalmobile media playback devices. In yet another example, a playback devicemay be integral to another device or component such as a television, alighting fixture, or some other device for indoor or outdoor use.

b. Example Playback Zone Configurations

Referring back to the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, theenvironment may have one or more playback zones, each with one or moreplayback devices. The media playback system 100 may be established withone or more playback zones, after which one or more zones may be added,or removed to arrive at the example configuration shown in FIG. 1. Eachzone may be given a name according to a different room or space such asan office, bathroom, master bedroom, bedroom, kitchen, dining room,living room, and/or balcony. In one case, a single playback zone mayinclude multiple rooms or spaces. In another case, a single room orspace may include multiple playback zones.

As shown in FIG. 1, the balcony, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, office,and bedroom zones each have one playback device, while the living roomand master bedroom zones each have multiple playback devices. In theliving room zone, playback devices 104, 106, 108, and 110 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as one or more bonded playback devices, as one or moreconsolidated playback devices, or any combination thereof. Similarly, inthe case of the master bedroom, playback devices 122 and 124 may beconfigured to play audio content in synchrony as individual playbackdevices, as a bonded playback device, or as a consolidated playbackdevice.

In one example, one or more playback zones in the environment of FIG. 1may each be playing different audio content. For instance, the user maybe grilling in the balcony zone and listening to hip hop music beingplayed by the playback device 102 while another user may be preparingfood in the kitchen zone and listening to classical music being playedby the playback device 114. In another example, a playback zone may playthe same audio content in synchrony with another playback zone. Forinstance, the user may be in the office zone where the playback device118 is playing the same rock music that is being playing by playbackdevice 102 in the balcony zone. In such a case, playback devices 102 and118 may be playing the rock music in synchrony such that the user mayseamlessly (or at least substantially seamlessly) enjoy the audiocontent that is being played out-loud while moving between differentplayback zones. Synchronization among playback zones may be achieved ina manner similar to that of synchronization among playback devices, asdescribed in previously referenced U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,395.

As suggested above, the zone configurations of the media playback system100 may be dynamically modified, and in some embodiments, the mediaplayback system 100 supports numerous configurations. For instance, if auser physically moves one or more playback devices to or from a zone,the media playback system 100 may be reconfigured to accommodate thechange(s). For instance, if the user physically moves the playbackdevice 102 from the balcony zone to the office zone, the office zone maynow include both the playback device 118 and the playback device 102.The playback device 102 may be paired or grouped with the office zoneand/or renamed if so desired via a control device such as the controldevices 126 and 128. On the other hand, if the one or more playbackdevices are moved to a particular area in the home environment that isnot already a playback zone, a new playback zone may be created for theparticular area.

Further, different playback zones of the media playback system 100 maybe dynamically combined into zone groups or split up into individualplayback zones. For instance, the dining room zone and the kitchen zone114 may be combined into a zone group for a dinner party such thatplayback devices 112 and 114 may render audio content in synchrony. Onthe other hand, the living room zone may be split into a television zoneincluding playback device 104, and a listening zone including playbackdevices 106, 108, and 110, if the user wishes to listen to music in theliving room space while another user wishes to watch television.

c. Example Control Devices

FIG. 3 shows a functional block diagram of an example control device 300that may be configured to be one or both of the control devices 126 and128 of the media playback system 100. As shown, the control device 300may include a processor 302, memory 304, a network interface 306, and auser interface 308. In one example, the control device 300 may be adedicated controller for the media playback system 100. In anotherexample, the control device 300 may be a network device on which mediaplayback system controller application software may be installed, suchas for example, an iPhone™, iPad™ or any other smart phone, tablet ornetwork device (e.g., a networked computer such as a PC or Mac™).

The processor 302 may be configured to perform functions relevant tofacilitating user access, control, and configuration of the mediaplayback system 100. The memory 304 may be configured to storeinstructions executable by the processor 302 to perform those functions.The memory 304 may also be configured to store the media playback systemcontroller application software and other data associated with the mediaplayback system 100 and the user.

In one example, the network interface 306 may be based on an industrystandard (e.g., infrared, radio, wired standards including IEEE 802.3,wireless standards including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communication standard, and so on). Thenetwork interface 306 may provide a means for the control device 300 tocommunicate with other devices in the media playback system 100. In oneexample, data and information (e.g., such as a state variable) may becommunicated between control device 300 and other devices via thenetwork interface 306. For instance, playback zone and zone groupconfigurations in the media playback system 100 may be received by thecontrol device 300 from a playback device or another network device, ortransmitted by the control device 300 to another playback device ornetwork device via the network interface 306. In some cases, the othernetwork device may be another control device.

Playback device control commands such as volume control and audioplayback control may also be communicated from the control device 300 toa playback device via the network interface 306. As suggested above,changes to configurations of the media playback system 100 may also beperformed by a user using the control device 300. The configurationchanges may include adding/removing one or more playback devices to/froma zone, adding/removing one or more zones to/from a zone group, forminga bonded or consolidated player, separating one or more playback devicesfrom a bonded or consolidated player, among others. Accordingly, thecontrol device 300 may sometimes be referred to as a controller, whetherthe control device 300 is a dedicated controller or a network device onwhich media playback system controller application software isinstalled.

The user interface 308 of the control device 300 may be configured tofacilitate user access and control of the media playback system 100, byproviding a controller interface such as the controller interface 400shown in FIG. 4. The controller interface 400 includes a playbackcontrol region 410, a playback zone region 420, a playback status region430, a playback queue region 440, and an audio content sources region450. The user interface 400 as shown is just one example of a userinterface that may be provided on a network device such as the controldevice 300 of FIG. 3 (and/or the control devices 126 and 128 of FIG. 1)and accessed by users to control a media playback system such as themedia playback system 100. Other user interfaces of varying formats,styles, and interactive sequences may alternatively be implemented onone or more network devices to provide comparable control access to amedia playback system.

The playback control region 410 may include selectable (e.g., by way oftouch or by using a cursor) icons to cause playback devices in aselected playback zone or zone group to play or pause, fast forward,rewind, skip to next, skip to previous, enter/exit shuffle mode,enter/exit repeat mode, enter/exit cross fade mode. The playback controlregion 410 may also include selectable icons to modify equalizationsettings, and playback volume, among other possibilities.

The playback zone region 420 may include representations of playbackzones within the media playback system 100. In some embodiments, thegraphical representations of playback zones may be selectable to bringup additional selectable icons to manage or configure the playback zonesin the media playback system, such as a creation of bonded zones,creation of zone groups, separation of zone groups, and renaming of zonegroups, among other possibilities.

For example, as shown, a “group” icon may be provided within each of thegraphical representations of playback zones. The “group” icon providedwithin a graphical representation of a particular zone may be selectableto bring up options to select one or more other zones in the mediaplayback system to be grouped with the particular zone. Once grouped,playback devices in the zones that have been grouped with the particularzone will be configured to play audio content in synchrony with theplayback device(s) in the particular zone. Analogously, a “group” iconmay be provided within a graphical representation of a zone group. Inthis case, the “group” icon may be selectable to bring up options todeselect one or more zones in the zone group to be removed from the zonegroup. Other interactions and implementations for grouping andungrouping zones via a user interface such as the user interface 400 arealso possible. The representations of playback zones in the playbackzone region 420 may be dynamically updated as playback zone or zonegroup configurations are modified.

The playback status region 430 may include graphical representations ofaudio content that is presently being played, previously played, orscheduled to play next in the selected playback zone or zone group. Theselected playback zone or zone group may be visually distinguished onthe user interface, such as within the playback zone region 420 and/orthe playback status region 430. The graphical representations mayinclude track title, artist name, album name, album year, track length,and other relevant information that may be useful for the user to knowwhen controlling the media playback system via the user interface 400.

The playback queue region 440 may include graphical representations ofaudio content in a playback queue associated with the selected playbackzone or zone group. In some embodiments, each playback zone or zonegroup may be associated with a playback queue containing informationcorresponding to zero or more audio items for playback by the playbackzone or zone group. For instance, each audio item in the playback queuemay comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI), a uniform resourcelocator (URL) or some other identifier that may be used by a playbackdevice in the playback zone or zone group to find and/or retrieve theaudio item from a local audio content source or a networked audiocontent source, possibly for playback by the playback device.

In one example, a playlist may be added to a playback queue, in whichcase information corresponding to each audio item in the playlist may beadded to the playback queue. In another example, audio items in aplayback queue may be saved as a playlist. In a further example, aplayback queue may be empty, or populated but “not in use” when theplayback zone or zone group is playing continuously streaming audiocontent, such as Internet radio that may continue to play untilotherwise stopped, rather than discrete audio items that have playbackdurations. In an alternative embodiment, a playback queue can includeInternet radio and/or other streaming audio content items and be “inuse” when the playback zone or zone group is playing those items. Otherexamples are also possible.

When playback zones or zone groups are “grouped” or “ungrouped,”playback queues associated with the affected playback zones or zonegroups may be cleared or re-associated. For example, if a first playbackzone including a first playback queue is grouped with a second playbackzone including a second playback queue, the established zone group mayhave an associated playback queue that is initially empty, that containsaudio items from the first playback queue (such as if the secondplayback zone was added to the first playback zone), that contains audioitems from the second playback queue (such as if the first playback zonewas added to the second playback zone), or a combination of audio itemsfrom both the first and second playback queues. Subsequently, if theestablished zone group is ungrouped, the resulting first playback zonemay be re-associated with the previous first playback queue, or beassociated with a new playback queue that is empty or contains audioitems from the playback queue associated with the established zone groupbefore the established zone group was ungrouped. Similarly, theresulting second playback zone may be re-associated with the previoussecond playback queue, or be associated with a new playback queue thatis empty, or contains audio items from the playback queue associatedwith the established zone group before the established zone group wasungrouped. Other examples are also possible.

Referring back to the user interface 400 of FIG. 4, the graphicalrepresentations of audio content in the playback queue region 440 mayinclude track titles, artist names, track lengths, and other relevantinformation associated with the audio content in the playback queue. Inone example, graphical representations of audio content may beselectable to bring up additional selectable icons to manage and/ormanipulate the playback queue and/or audio content represented in theplayback queue. For instance, a represented audio content may be removedfrom the playback queue, moved to a different position within theplayback queue, or selected to be played immediately, or after anycurrently playing audio content, among other possibilities. A playbackqueue associated with a playback zone or zone group may be stored in amemory on one or more playback devices in the playback zone or zonegroup, on a playback device that is not in the playback zone or zonegroup, and/or some other designated device.

The audio content sources region 450 may include graphicalrepresentations of selectable audio content sources from which audiocontent may be retrieved and played by the selected playback zone orzone group. Discussions pertaining to audio content sources may be foundin the following section.

d. Example Audio Content Sources

As indicated previously, one or more playback devices in a zone or zonegroup may be configured to retrieve for playback audio content (e.g.according to a corresponding URI or URL for the audio content) from avariety of available audio content sources. In one example, audiocontent may be retrieved by a playback device directly from acorresponding audio content source (e.g., a line-in connection). Inanother example, audio content may be provided to a playback device overa network via one or more other playback devices or network devices.

Example audio content sources may include a memory of one or moreplayback devices in a media playback system such as the media playbacksystem 100 of FIG. 1, local music libraries on one or more networkdevices (such as a control device, a network-enabled personal computer,or a networked-attached storage (NAS), for example), streaming audioservices providing audio content via the Internet (e.g., the cloud), oraudio sources connected to the media playback system via a line-in inputconnection on a playback device or network devise, among otherpossibilities.

In some embodiments, audio content sources may be regularly added orremoved from a media playback system such as the media playback system100 of FIG. 1. In one example, an indexing of audio items may beperformed whenever one or more audio content sources are added, removedor updated. Indexing of audio items may involve scanning foridentifiable audio items in all folders/directory shared over a networkaccessible by playback devices in the media playback system, andgenerating or updating an audio content database containing metadata(e.g., title, artist, album, track length, among others) and otherassociated information, such as a URI or URL for each identifiable audioitem found. Other examples for managing and maintaining audio contentsources may also be possible.

The above discussions relating to playback devices, controller devices,playback zone configurations, and media content sources provide onlysome examples of operating environments within which functions andmethods described below may be implemented. Other operating environmentsand configurations of media playback systems, playback devices, andnetwork devices not explicitly described herein may also be applicableand suitable for implementation of the functions and methods.

III. Methods and Systems for Managing Application Access of a MediaPlayback System

In example implementations, a server may maintain a list (or lists) ofcontroller applications that are (or are not) approved to control one ormore media playback devices. To illustrate, FIG. 8 shows an examplenetwork configuration that includes a computing device 802, a server806, messages 807A and 807B, and a media playback system 810 thatincludes a playback device 812, a playback device 822, and a controldevice 814. It should be understood that the network configuration mayinclude multiple instances of the aforementioned network elements and/ormay include additional network elements not shown.

In various examples, the server 806 may be associated with the mediaplayback system 810. For instance, the server 806 may maintain data foran entity or person (e.g., a designer or manufacturer of the mediaplayback system 810) facilitating third-party controller applicationaccess to media playback systems such as the media playback system 810.The computing device 802 may be associated with an entity or person(e.g., a media service provider) developing or marketing a controllerapplication for use with media playback systems such as the mediaplayback system 810.

The server 806 may be communicatively coupled to the media playbacksystem 810 and may store and maintain data identifying one or morecontroller applications that are authorized to access or control themedia playback system 810 and/or data representing one or morecontroller applications that are not authorized to access or control themedia playback system 810. For instance, the server 806 may store a“whitelist” that includes validation-keys and/or other data thatcorresponds to the one or more controller applications that are allowedto access or control the media playback system 810. Additionally oralternatively, the server 806 may store a “blacklist” that includesvalidation-keys and/or other data that represents one or more controllerapplications that are not allowed to access or control the mediaplayback system 810.

The server 806 may (perhaps daily or otherwise periodically) update datastored at the server 806 regarding controller applications and refreshthe “blacklist” and/or “whitelist” and (perhaps daily or otherwiseperiodically) send the “blacklist” and/or “whitelist” as part of themessage 807A to the media playback system 810 (e.g., playback device812). The message 807A may also be sent based on the server 806detecting data being added to or removed from the “blacklist” or“whitelist.” The media playback system 810 may allow or not allowvarious controller applications to access or control the media playbacksystem 810 based on the contents of the “blacklist” and/or “whitelist.”

The server 806 may also store and maintain usage data related to one ormore controller applications that are used to control the media playbacksystem 810 and/or other media playback systems (not shown). For example,the control device 814 may run a controller application to control theplayback device 812, and the playback device 812 or the control device814 may send, as part of the message 807B, usage data related to the useof the controller application to control the playback device 812.

In general, the usage data may indicate that a particular controllerapplication was used to control a media playback system. In someimplementations, such usage data may identify the number of occurrencesor perhaps the duration of time that a given controller application wasused to control a media playback system. In some examples, the usagedata may indicate other information related to a controller application.For instance, the usage data may include information such as (i) asource of media streamed by the media playback system 810 or (ii)characterizations of playback commands that the controller applicationcauses the media playback system 810 to perform. For example, the usagedata may indicate that the controller application caused the mediaplayback system 810 to stream media from a first media service provider(i.e., a data storage location corresponding to the first media serviceprovider) and that the controller application caused media items to beadded to a playback queue of the playback device 812.

Referring now to FIG. 5, method 500 presents an example method that maybe implemented within an operating environment involving, for example,the media playback system 100 of FIG. 1, one or more of the playbackdevice 200 of FIG. 2, one or more of the control device 300 of FIG. 3,or any of the devices depicted in FIGS. 8 and 9. Method 500 may includeone or more operations, functions, or actions as illustrated by one ormore of blocks 502-508.

In addition, for the methods 500, 600, 700 and other processes andmethods disclosed herein, the flowcharts show functionality andoperation of one possible implementation of present embodiments. In thisregard, each block may represent a module, a segment, or a portion ofprogram code, which includes one or more instructions executable by aprocessor for implementing specific logical functions or steps in theprocess. The program code may be stored on any type of computer readablemedium, for example, such as a storage device including a disk or harddrive. The computer readable medium may include non-transitory computerreadable medium, for example, such as computer-readable media thatstores data for short periods of time like register memory, processorcache and Random Access Memory (RAM). The computer readable medium mayalso include non-transitory media, such as secondary or persistent longterm storage, like read only memory (ROM), optical or magnetic disks,compact-disc read only memory (CD-ROM), for example. The computerreadable media may also be any other volatile or non-volatile storagesystems. The computer readable medium may be considered a computerreadable storage medium, for example, or a tangible storage device. Inaddition, for the methods 500, 600, 700 and other processes and methodsdisclosed herein, each block shown in the FIGS. 5, 6, and 7 mayrepresent circuitry that is wired to perform the specific logicalfunctions in the process. Moreover, although the blocks are illustratedin sequential order, these blocks may also be performed in parallel,and/or in a different order than those described herein. Also, thevarious blocks may be combined into fewer blocks, divided intoadditional blocks, and/or removed based upon the desired implementation.

At block 502, the method 500 includes receiving, by a computing systemcommunicatively coupled to a media playback system, a validation-keyrequest including identification information related to a controllerapplication through which one or more media items are added to aplayback queue.

For example, referring back to FIG. 8, the server 806 may receive avalidation-key request 804 from the computing device 802. The computingdevice 802 may be associated with persons or an entity involved indeveloping and/or distributing the controller application. The computingdevice 802 may send the validation-key request 804 to the server 806 sothat the computing device 802 may subsequently provide a validation-keyto one or more control devices configured to use the controllerapplication to control the media playback system 810. For example, thecontrol device 814 may be configured to download the controllerapplication (i.e., data 803) from the computing device 802 (or anothercomputing device that is at some point communicatively coupled to thecomputing device 802) and the validation-key may be embedded or loadedon the control device 814 as part of the installed controllerapplication.

In another example shown in FIG. 9, a server 906 may receive avalidation-key request 916 from a control device 914 and send acertification message 917 that includes the validation-key to thecontrol device 914, without a computing device such as the computingdevice 802 of FIG. 8 serving as an intermediary between the server 906and the control device 914.

Further, the control device 914 may receive, from the server 906, thecertification message 917 that includes the validation-key (perhaps aspart of a download of the controller application), but the server 906may subsequently send one or more new validation keys to the playbackdevice 912 to use for validating controller applications attempting tocontrol the playback device 912. This may render the validation-keypreviously received by the control device 914 invalid or out of date. Inthis case, the control device 914 may receive, from the server 906, anew validation-key that the playback device 912 may recognize as valid.Based on receiving the new validation-key from the control device 914,the playback device 912 may send, to the control device 914, a validsession identifier.

Referring back to FIG. 8, the validation-key request 804 may compriseidentification information related to the controller applicationconfigured to be installed on the control device 814 of the mediaplayback system 810. For example, the identification information relatedto the controller application may include contact information of one ormore parties involved in development and/or distribution of thecontroller application, names of one or more companies associated withthe controller application, a name of the controller application, orother identification information.

The computing device 802 may send the validation-key request 804, atleast in part, to receive a validation key within the certificationmessage 808 so that the validation key may be provided to the controldevice 814 (perhaps during a download of the controller application bythe control device 814 from the computing device 802). Once thecontroller application being executed by the control device 814 hasaccess to the validation key, the control device 814 may be used to addone or more media items to a playback queue of the playback device 812(or playback device 822). The controller application may also be used tocause other modifications to the playback queue. In this way, thecontroller application may be used to customize a media playbackexperience provided by the playback device 812 and/or the playbackdevice 822. Also, after the control device 814 has been initiallyvalidated to control the playback device 812, the control device 814 mayreceive updated validation-key(s) from the server 806 (perhaps as partof a certification message 917 as depicted in FIG. 9).

Referring again to FIG. 5, at block 504 the method 500 includesdetermining that the controller application meets at least onequality-control metric. For example, the server 806 of FIG. 8 mayretrieve data stored in a memory of the server 806 that indicates thatthe controller application meets the at least one quality-controlmetric. The server 806 may be periodically updated with such dataindicating controller applications that may or may not meet variousquality-control metrics. For instance, data indicating controllerapplications that meet the at least one quality-control metric may bestored in a “whitelist” within memory of the server 806 whereas dataindicating controller applications that do not meet the at least onequality-control metric may be stored in a “blacklist” within memory ofthe server 806.

For example, the server 806 may, perhaps on a real-time basis, collectusage data from several media playback systems. The usage data may beindicative of whether a given controller application being used tocontrol multiple media playback systems continues to meet the at leastone quality-control metric. For example, the at least onequality-control metric may include whether the controller application isoperating according to a terms of service agreement or whether thecontroller application is operating in a sufficiently predictable andreliable manner. If the received usage data indicates such a failure ofthe controller application to meet the at least one quality-controlmetric, the server 806 may place the controller application on the“blacklist.” In a similar manner, if the usage data indicates that acontroller application previously placed on the “blacklist” has begun tomeet the at least one quality-control metric, the server 806 may placethe controller application on the “whitelist.”

In some examples, the validation-key request 804 may include results ofa diagnostic procedure designed to show whether the controllerapplication meets the at least one quality-control metric. For example,a control device executing the controller application may execute abackground application (perhaps downloaded from the server 806 orcomputing device 802) that collects data related to reliability andpredictability of the ongoing operation of the controller applicationbeing used to control a media playback system. Through the backgroundapplication, the control device may provide the diagnostic data to theserver 806. The server 806 may have stored data representing minimum“scores” or diagnostic results that represent a controller applicationthat meets the at least one quality-control metric. The server 806 mayuse the stored data as a point of comparison to determine whether thecontroller application is meeting the at least one quality-controlmetric.

The at least one quality-control metric may include metrics such asreliability, predictability, functionality, and security, among others.For example, a first controller application may be prone to “crashing”or entering a race condition in which the computing device running thefirst controller application may become unresponsive to inputs, a secondcontroller application may have security vulnerabilities, a thirdcontroller application may not respond consistently to certain inputs,but a fourth controller application may be generally robust andreliable. In such a situation, it may be beneficial to allow the fourthcontroller application to control or access the media playback system810 while preventing the first, second, and third controllerapplications from controlling or accessing the media playback system810.

Referring again to FIG. 5, at block 506 the method 500 includes based ondetermining that the controller application meets the at least onequality-control metric, generating a validation-key, where thevalidation-key includes (i) an application identifier corresponding tothe application, and/or (ii) a system identifier corresponding to themedia playback system. In some instances, both “native” controllerapplications associated with the media playback system 810 (e.g., acontroller application represented by controller interface 400 of FIG.4) and media applications acting as controller applications may berequired to use a validation-key to gain access or control of the mediaplayback system 810. The validation-key may be generated by the server806 and may include arbitrarily or randomly generated data so that thevalidation-key is not easily compromised using brute force passwordcracking methods. Generally, the validation-key may include any datathat identifies the controller application and the media playback system810. For example, the application identifier may include any data stringthat may be used to identify the controller application, such as“App10V2.1.” The system identifier may include any data string that maybe used to identify the media playback system 810 such as “SystemX,” sothat the validation-key is perhaps “App10V2.1.SystemX.” The systemidentifier may also generically identify a given make and/or model ofmedia playback system as opposed to identifying a specific instance of amedia playback system.

The validation-key may also include data that identifies an expirationtime for the validation-key or an operating system or platform withwhich the controller application is configured to interact with. Forinstance, a validation-key that includes an expiration time that hasalready elapsed may be rejected by the media playback system 810. Inother instances, the validation-key may be associated with theexpiration time at the playback device 802. For example, datarepresenting the validation-key and the expiration time associated withthe validation-key may be stored at the playback device 812 (or at alocation accessible to the playback device 812), perhaps within a commonrow or column of a data table.

In some examples, the controller application may be in a testing ordevelopment stage, perhaps meaning that a person or entity associatedwith the controller application desires to use the controllerapplication to access and/or control the media playback system 810 inorder to test or debug the controller application. Before generating thevalidation-key, the server 806 may determine (perhaps based on contentsof the validation-key request 804) that the controller application is ina development state and based on determining that the controllerapplication is in the development state, assign an in-developmentindicator to the application identifier. The in-development indicatormay be included in the validation-key (i.e., the application identifier)and include any data string that indicates that the controllerapplication identified by the application identifier is in a developmentstage (e.g., “betav2.2”).

In some examples, the in-development indicator may correspond to aprivilege to access or control a first playback device but not a secondplayback device. For example, the first playback device may receive froma control device a validation-key (i.e., an application identifier) thatincludes the in-development indicator and, in response, allow thecontroller application to cause the control device to control the firstplayback device. In contrast, the second playback device may receivefrom the control device the validation-key that includes thein-development indicator and, in response, prevent the controllerapplication from causing the control device to control the secondplayback device. Here, the validation-key that includes thein-development indicator may also include data specifically indicatingplayback devices (e.g., via serial number etc.) that the controllerapplication in development is allowed to control.

As shown in FIG. 5, at block 508 the method 500 includes transmitting acertification message indicating that the controller application meetsthe at least one quality-control metric, where the certification messageincludes the validation-key. For example, at FIG. 8, certificationmessage 808 may include any data that includes the validation-key andindicates, to the computing device 802 (or the control device 814), thatthe controller application meets the at least one quality-controlmetric. The certification message 808 may include a textual messageindicating that the controller application meets the at least onequality-control metric. In some examples, the computing device 802 maysend the validation-key to the control device 814, perhaps as part of adownload of the controller application to the control device 814, sothat the control device 814 may control the media playback system 810.That is, the validation-key may be embedded within program instructionsof the controller application that is configured to run on the controldevice 814.

Sometime after transmitting the certification message 808, the server806 may determine that the controller application has subsequentlyfailed the at least one quality-control metric or perhaps one or moreother quality-control metrics. For example, usage data regarding thecontroller application may be sent by the media playback system 810within message 807B that is gathered and stored by the server 806, andbased on the usage data, the server 806 may determine that thecontroller application has failed the at least one quality-controlmetric and should not be allowed to access or control the media playbacksystem 810. The server 806 may store the application identifiercorresponding to the controller application that failed the at least onequality-control metric on an unauthorized list (e.g., a “blacklist”)that may include other application identifiers that correspond to otherrespective controller applications that are not authorized to controlone or more playback devices. Other examples are also possible.

The server 806 may periodically transmit or send the unauthorized listof controller applications to the media playback system 810 as part ofmessage 807A. For example, the server 806 may transmit the unauthorizedlist to the playback device 812 (or otherwise transmit the unauthorizedlist to the media playback system 810) after a predetermined amount oftime elapses (i.e., periodically) or based on detecting that thecontents of the unauthorized list have been refreshed, modified orchanged (e.g., adding or removing an application identifier). The server806 may also periodically send a list of controller applications thatmeet the at least one quality-control metric (e.g., a “whitelist”) tothe media playback system 810 based on a predetermined amount of timeelapsing or based on the contents of the authorized list or “whitelist”being refreshed or changed.

Method 600 shown in FIG. 6 presents an example method that may beimplemented within an operating environment involving, for example, themedia playback system 100 of FIG. 1 and one or more of the playbackdevice 200 of FIG. 2. Method 600 may include one or more operations,functions, or actions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 602-612.

Referring to FIG. 6, at block 602 the method 600 includes, receiving, bya playback device of a media playback system, a validation-key, wherethe validation-key includes (i) an application identifier correspondingto a controller application through which one or more media items areadded to a playback queue and/or (ii) a system identifier correspondingto the media playback system.

For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the playback device 812 receives avalidation-key 816 from the control device 814 of the media playbacksystem 810. The validation-key 816 includes an application identifiersuch as a data string that identifies a controller application throughwhich one or more media items are added to a playback queue of theplayback device 812. The validation-key 816 also may include a systemidentifier such as a data string that corresponds to the media playbacksystem 810 and/or generically corresponds to a given make and/or modelof the playback system 810. That is, the validation-key 816 (if valid)may be accepted by other media playback systems similar to the mediaplayback system 810 and allow a control device (e.g., similar to thecontrol device 814) to control the other media playback systems as well.The validation-key 816 may be a validation key like the validation-keytransmitted (at block 508 of FIG. 5) from the server 806 to thecomputing device 802 as part of the certification message 808.

Referring again to FIG. 6, at block 604 the method 600 includes, basedon at least the application identifier, creating a session identifiercorresponding to the playback device.

For example, the playback device 812 may create the session identifier818, which may include a data string that represents a communicationsession that the control device 814 and the playback device 812 mayestablish via the controller application (e.g., “Session 313”). In someexamples, the playback device 812 may create the session identifierbased on (i) determining that the received application identifiermatches an application identifier contained within an authorized list or“whitelist” of controller applications stored at the playback device 812(or the server 806) and/or (ii) recognizing the received systemidentifier as a valid system identifier that corresponds to or isassociated with the media playback system 810. In cases where the mediaplayback system 810 is not communicatively coupled to the server 806,the playback device 812 may create the session identifier 818 based onlyon recognizing the system identifier as associated with the mediaplayback system 810 or based on the contents of the locally stored“whitelist”.

In another example, before creating the session identifier 818, theplayback device 812 may receive and/or store an unauthorized list or“blacklist” that includes application identifiers that correspond torespective applications that are unauthorized to control one or moreplayback devices. The playback device 812 may determine that thereceived unauthorized list does not include the received applicationidentifier, and based at least on determining that the unauthorized listdoes not include the received application identifier, create the sessionidentifier 818. In this way, the playback device 812 may grant access tocontrol devices by using either a “whitelist” or a “blacklist” todetermine whether a control device should receive a valid sessionidentifier.

In one example, the playback device 812 may determine that the systemidentifier perhaps received as part of the validation-key 816 matches auniversal identifier corresponding to the media playback system 810 andone or more additional media playback systems (e.g., any media playbacksystem of a common make and/or model). In one example, the universalidentifier may include a data string that is shorter than a systemidentifier representing an individual media playback system. Forinstance, a system identifier representing a single media playbacksystem may include a data string extension such as a serial number oranother data string extension that identifies an individual mediaplayback system, whereas the universal identifier may include no suchdata string extension (or a different data string extension). Otherexamples are possible. Based at least on determining that the systemidentifier perhaps received as part of the validation-key 816 matchesthe universal identifier, the playback device 812 may create the sessionidentifier 818.

In another example, the validation-key 816 may include an expirationtime and the playback device 812 may determine that the receivedvalidation-key 816 is received before the expiration time elapsed. Theplayback device 812 may then create the session identifier 818 based ondetermining that the received validation-key 816 was received before theexpiration time elapsed. If the validation-key 816 is received after theexpiration time elapses, the playback device 812 may not send a sessionidentifier to the control device 814 and may instead send an errormessage 821 to the control device 814 indicating that the validation-key816 is expired.

In other instances, the validation-key may be associated with theexpiration time at the playback device 802. For example, datarepresenting the validation-key and the expiration time associated withthe validation-key may be stored at the playback device 812 (or at alocation accessible to the playback device 812), perhaps within a commonrow or column of a data table.

After creating the session identifier 818, the playback device 812 maystore the session identifier 818 and the received application identifierwithin memory such that the session identifier 818 is associated withthe application identifier. For example, the session identifier 818 andthe application identifier may be stored in a common row of a data tablestored at the playback device 812.

Referring again to FIG. 6, at block 606 the method 606 includestransmitting the session identifier. For example, as shown in FIG. 8,the playback device 812 may transmit the session identifier 818 to thecontrol device 814. The control device 814 may then use the sessionidentifier 818 to control or access the playback device 812 (i.e., bysending a playback request 820 to the playback device 812). That is, insome examples, the playback device 812 may only execute receivedplayback commands (e.g., commands to add items to a playback queue or tonavigate the playback queue) that include a valid session identifier.

Referring back to FIG. 6, at block 608 the method 600 includes receivinga playback request including (i) the session identifier and (ii) aplayback command indicating a command related to playback of media bythe playback device. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the playbackdevice 812 may receive a playback request 820 from the control device814. The playback request 820 may include the session identifier 818 anddata indicating a command to alter a playback queue of the playbackdevice 812, for example.

Referring to FIG. 6, at block 610 the method 600 includes determiningthat the session identifier is valid. The playback device 812 maydetermine that the session identifier received as part of the playbackrequest 820 is valid by comparing the received session identifier to oneor more session identifiers stored within a memory of the playbackdevice 812. For instance, after creating a session identifier, theplayback device 812 may store the created session identifier for futurecomparison to session identifiers received as part of received playbackrequests.

In one example, the session identifier 818 sent from the playback device812 to the control device 814 may include an expiration time (e.g., 30minutes after the session identifier 818 is generated) after which thesession identifier 818 expires and is no longer valid. In such acircumstance, the playback device 812 may compare the expiration timeincluded as part of the session identifier received as part of theplayback request 820 to a current time. The playback device 812 maydetermine the received session identifier to be valid if the playbackdevice 812 determines that the received session identifier was receivedbefore the expiration time elapsed.

In other instances, the session identifier may be associated with theexpiration time at the playback device 802. For example, datarepresenting the session identifier and the expiration time associatedwith the session identifier may be stored at the playback device 812,perhaps within a common row or column of a data table.

In another example, instead of sending an expiration time as part of thesession identifier 818, the playback device 812 may store an expirationtime within a data table so that the expiration time is associated withthe session identifier 818. Then, a receipt time of a session identifierreceived with the playback request 820 may be compared to the storedexpiration time to determine if the received session identifier is validand if the playback command included in the playback request 820 shouldbe performed by the playback device 812.

Referring again to FIG. 6, at block 612 the method 600 includes, basedon determining that the session identifier is valid, executing theplayback command. For instance, the playback command received as part ofthe playback request 820 may represent a command to skip a currentlyplaying media item in the playback queue of the playback device 812 andthe playback device 812 may accordingly skip the currently playing mediaitem to play back a subsequent media item. In another example, theplayback command received as part of the playback request 820 mayinclude a command to add at least one media item to the playback queue.Accordingly, the playback device 812 may execute the playback command byadding the at least one media item to the playback queue.

After the playback device 812 determines that the session identifierreceived as part of the playback request 820 is valid and executes theplayback command based on the determination, the playback device 812 maytransmit reporting data within a message 807B (e.g., usage data relatedto the controller application) that includes identification informationrelated to the controller application. For example, the playback device812 may transmit data within the message 807B to the server 806. Thedata within the message 807B may include usage data corresponding to thecontroller application running on the control device 814. The usage datamay include data related to sources of media content played back by theplayback device 812 in response to playback requests 820 sent using thecontroller application or data indicating a history of playback commandsincluded in playback requests 820 sent using the controller application.

Method 700 shown in FIG. 7 presents an example method that may beimplemented within an operating environment involving, for example, themedia playback system 100 of FIG. 1 and one or more of the playbackdevice 200 of FIG. 2. Method 700 may include one or more operations,functions, or actions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 702-706.

At block 702, the method 700 includes transmitting, by a computingdevice communicatively coupled to a media playback system, avalidation-key, where the validation-key includes (i) an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue and/or (ii) a systemidentifier corresponding to the media playback system. As shown in FIG.8, the control device 814 may transmit the validation-key 816 to theplayback device 812. The validation-key transmitted by the controldevice 814 may be similar to the validation-key transmitted as part ofthe certification message 808 (e.g., at block 508 of FIG. 5) or thevalidation-key received by the playback device 812 (e.g., at block 602of FIG. 6).

In one example, the computing device 802 may send within data 803 thevalidation-key to the control device 814, so that the control device 814may send the validation-key 816 to the playback device 812. In anotherexample (represented in FIG. 9), functions of the computing device 802may be performed by the control device 814.

As shown in FIG. 9, before transmitting a validation-key, a controldevice 914 may send a validation-key request 916 to a server 906. Theserver 906 may determine that a controller application identified by thevalidation-key request 916 meets at least one quality-control metric.Based on the determination, the server 906 may send a certificationmessage 917 (including a validation-key) to be received by the controldevice 914. The certification message 917 may indicate that thecontroller application meets at least one quality-control metric. Thecontrol device 914 may then send the validation-key 918 to a playbackdevice 912. The playback device 912 may determine that thevalidation-key 918 is valid and send a session identifier 920 to thecontrol device 914. The control device 914 may then send the sessionidentifier back to the playback device 912 as part of a playback request922.

Referring back to FIG. 7, at block 704, the method 700 includes, aftertransmitting the validation-key, receiving a session identifiercorresponding to a playback device of the media playback system. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 8, the control device 814 receives the sessionidentifier 818. A session identifier may be a data string uniquelycorresponding to a single playback device. For example, a controllerapplication may need to use additional session identifiers to controladditional respective playback devices.

Referring again to FIG. 7, at block 706 the method 700 includestransmitting a playback request including (i) the session identifier and(ii) a playback command indicating a command related to playback ofmedia by the playback device. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, thecontrol device 814 transmits a playback request 820 that includes thesession identifier and a playback command indicating a command relatedto playback of media by the playback device 812. In exampleimplementations, transmitting the playback request 820 may includetransmitting a universal plug and play (UPnP) request comprising an HTTPheader comprising the session identifier 818. Other examples of playbackrequests are also possible.

Before transmitting the playback request 820, the control device 814 maydetermine that a duration of time remaining before the sessionidentifier expires is less than a predetermined threshold amount of timeand based on the determination, re-transmit the validation-key 816. Forexample, the control device 814 may determine that the sessionidentifier 818 expires in 5 minutes. Based on the determination, thecontrol device 814 may request a new session identifier byretransmitting the validation-key 816 with a new expiration times or bytransmitting a new validation-key.

In another example, the control device 814 may transmit the playbackrequest 820 and receive an error message 821, from the playback device812, indicating that the session identifier 818 expired. Based onreceiving the error message, the control device 814 may retransmit thevalidation-key 816 (or transmit a new validation-key) to the playbackdevice 812 so that the playback device 812 may send a new (valid)session identifier 818 to the control device 814.

In some examples, the control device 814 may interact with or controlmore than one playback device. For instance, after transmitting thevalidation-key 816, the control device 814 may send the validation-key824 to a second playback device 822 and receive, from the secondplayback device 822, a second session identifier 826 corresponding tothe second playback device 822. The second session identifier 826 may bedifferent from the first session identifier 818. The control device 814may then transmit a second playback request 828 that includes the secondsession identifier 826 and a second playback command indicating acommand related to playback of media by the second playback device 822.In this way, the control device 814 may use multiple session identifiersthat are respectively associated with multiple playback devices. But inanother example, the control device 814 may cause the first and secondplayback devices 812 and 822 to form a playback zone and playback mediain synchrony, with the control device 814 perhaps using a common sessionidentifier to control both playback devices 812 and 822. In such anexample, the playback device 812 may be a zone coordinator of a playbackzone that includes playback devices 812 and 822. That is, the playbackdevice 812 may operate to control the playback device 822 and/or otherplayback devices of the playback zone, by sending playback commands toother playback devices of the playback zone and/or maintaining aplayback queue for the playback zone, for example.

IV. Conclusion

The description above discloses, among other things, various examplesystems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture including,among other components, firmware and/or software executed on hardware.It is understood that such examples are merely illustrative and shouldnot be considered as limiting. For example, it is contemplated that anyor all of the firmware, hardware, and/or software aspects or componentscan be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software,exclusively in firmware, or in any combination of hardware, software,and/or firmware. Accordingly, the examples provided are not the onlyway(s) to implement such systems, methods, apparatus, and/or articles ofmanufacture.

In one aspect, a method is provided. The method involves receiving, by aplayback device of a media playback system, a validation-key, whereinthe validation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; based on at least the application identifier,creating a session identifier corresponding to the playback device;transmitting the session identifier receiving a playback requestcomprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) a playback commandindicating a command related to playback of media by the playbackdevice; determining that the received session identifier is valid; andbased on determining that the received session identifier is valid,executing the playback command.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a playback device to cause the playbackdevice to perform functions. The functions include receiving avalidation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; based on at least theapplication identifier, creating a session identifier corresponding tothe playback device; transmitting the session identifier; receiving aplayback request comprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) aplayback command indicating a command related to playback of media bythe playback device; determining that the received session identifier isvalid; and based on determining that the received session identifier isvalid, executing the playback command.

In another aspect, a playback device is provided. The playback deviceincludes a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable mediumstoring instructions that when executed by the playback device cause theplayback device to perform functions comprising: receiving avalidation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises (i) an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; based on at least theapplication identifier, creating a session identifier corresponding tothe playback device; transmitting the session identifier; receiving aplayback request comprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) aplayback command indicating a command related to playback of media bythe playback device; determining that the received session identifier isvalid; and based on determining that the received session identifier isvalid, executing the playback command.

In another aspect, the disclosure includes a method that includestransmitting, by a computing device communicatively coupled to a mediaplayback system, a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprisesan application identifier corresponding to a controller applicationthrough which one or more media items are added to a playback queue;thereafter, receiving a session identifier corresponding to a playbackdevice of the media playback system; and transmitting a playback requestcomprising (i) the session identifier and (ii) a playback commandindicating a command related to playback of media by the playbackdevice.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a computing device communicatively coupled toa media playback system to cause the computing device to performfunctions. The functions include transmitting a validation-key, whereinthe validation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; thereafter, receiving a session identifiercorresponding to a playback device of the media playback system; andtransmitting a playback request comprising (i) the session identifierand (ii) a playback command indicating a command related to playback ofmedia by the playback device.

In yet another aspect, a computing device is provided. The computingdevice includes a processor and a non-transitory computer-readablemedium storing instructions that when executed by the computing devicecause the computing device to perform functions comprising: transmittinga validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier corresponding to a controller application through which oneor more media items are added to a playback queue; thereafter, receivinga session identifier corresponding to a playback device of the mediaplayback system; and transmitting a playback request comprising (i) thesession identifier and (ii) a playback command indicating a commandrelated to playback of media by the playback device.

In another aspect, the disclosure includes a method that comprisesreceiving, by a computing system communicatively coupled to a mediaplayback system, a validation-key request comprising identificationinformation related to a controller application through which one ormore media items are added to a playback queue; determining that thecontroller application meets at least one quality-control metric; basedon determining that the controller application meets the at least onequality-control metric, generating a validation-key, wherein thevalidation-key comprises an application identifier corresponding to theapplication; and transmitting a certification message indicating thatthe controller application meets the at least one quality-controlmetric, wherein the certification message comprises the validation-key.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium has stored thereoninstructions executable by a computing device communicatively coupled toa media playback system to cause the computing device to performfunctions. The functions include receiving a validation-key requestcomprising identification information related to a controllerapplication through which one or more media items are added to aplayback queue; determining that the controller application meets atleast one quality-control metric; based on determining that thecontroller application meets the at least one quality-control metric,generating a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises anapplication identifier corresponding to the application; andtransmitting a certification message indicating that the controllerapplication meets the at least one quality-control metric, wherein thecertification message comprises the validation-key.

In yet another aspect, a computing device communicatively coupled to amedia playback system is provided. The computing device includes aprocessor and a non-transitory computer-readable medium storinginstructions that when executed by the computing device cause thecomputing device to perform functions comprising: receiving avalidation-key request comprising identification information related toa controller application through which one or more media items are addedto a playback queue; determining that the controller application meetsat least one quality-control metric; based on determining that thecontroller application meets the at least one quality-control metric,generating a validation-key, wherein the validation-key comprises anapplication identifier corresponding to the application; andtransmitting a certification message indicating that the controllerapplication meets the at least one quality-control metric, wherein thecertification message comprises the validation-key.

Additionally, references herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of aninvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible,non-transitory medium such as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on,storing the software and/or firmware.

The invention claimed is:
 1. Tangible, non-transitory computer readablemedia comprising program instructions stored therein, wherein theprogram instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause acontroller device to perform functions comprising: requesting avalidation-key from a media system server, wherein the media systemserver is associated with a first playback device; after requesting thevalidation-key, receiving the validation-key from the media systemserver, wherein the validation-key comprises an application identifierfor a controller application running on the controller device, whereinthe controller application is associated with a media streaming service;transmitting the validation-key to the first playback device via a localarea network; after transmitting the validation-key to the firstplayback device via the local area network, receiving a first sessionidentifier from the first playback device via the local area network;and after receiving the first session identifier, causing the firstplayback device to play a first audio track from the media streamingservice by transmitting a first playback request to the first playbackdevice, wherein the first playback request comprises (i) the firstsession identifier and (ii) a first playback command that causes atleast the first playback device to obtain the first audio track from thestreaming media service and play the first audio track.
 2. The tangible,non-transitory computer readable media of claim 1, wherein thevalidation-key further comprises a system identifier corresponding tothe first playback device.
 3. The tangible, non-transitory computerreadable media of claim 1, wherein the first playback device is a memberof a playback system comprising a plurality of playback devices, andwherein the validation-key comprises a system identifier correspondingto the playback system.
 4. The tangible, non-transitory computerreadable media of claim 1, wherein the validation-key further comprisesdata that identifies an expiration time.
 5. The tangible, non-transitorycomputer readable media of claim 1, wherein the first session identifieris associated with an expiration time.
 6. The tangible, non-transitorycomputer readable media of claim 1, wherein the first session identifieris associated with an expiration time, and wherein the functions furthercomprise: before transmitting another playback request to the firstplayback device, determining whether a duration of time remaining beforethe first session identifier expires is less than a threshold durationof time; and when the duration of time remaining before the firstsession identifier expires is less than the threshold duration of time,re-transmitting the validation-key to the first playback device via thelocal area network.
 7. The tangible, non-transitory computer readablemedia of claim 1, wherein the first session identifier is associatedwith the first playback device.
 8. The tangible, non-transitory computerreadable media of claim 1, wherein transmitting the first playbackrequest to the first playback device comprises transmitting a UniversalPlug and Play (UPnP) request comprising a Hypertext Transfer Protocol(HTTP) header comprising the first session identifier.
 9. The tangible,non-transitory computer readable media of claim 1, wherein the functionsfurther comprise: transmitting the validation-key to a second playbackdevice via the local area network; after transmitting the validation-keyto the second playback device via the local area network, receiving asecond session identifier from the second playback device via the localarea network; and after receiving the second session identifier, causingthe second playback device to play a second audio track from the mediastreaming service by transmitting a second playback request to thesecond playback device, wherein the second playback request comprises(i) the second session identifier and (ii) a second playback commandthat causes the second playback device to obtain the second audio trackfrom the streaming media service and play the second audio track. 10.The tangible, non-transitory computer readable media of claim 1, whereinthe first playback command that causes at least the first playbackdevice to obtain the first audio track from the streaming media serviceand play the first audio track comprises one or more playback commandsthat cause the first playback device to obtain the first audio trackfrom the streaming media service and play the first audio track insynchrony with at least a second playback device.
 11. A controllerdevice comprising: one or more processors; a tangible, non-transitorycomputer readable media; and program instructions stored on thetangible, non-transitory computer readable media that executable by theone or more processors such that the controller device is configured to:request a validation-key from a media system server, wherein the mediasystem server is associated with a first playback device; afterrequesting the validation-key, receive the validation-key from the mediasystem server, wherein the validation-key comprises an applicationidentifier for a controller application running on the controllerdevice, wherein the controller application is associated with a mediastreaming service; transmit the validation-key to the first playbackdevice via a local area network; after transmitting the validation-keyto the first playback device via the local area network, receive a firstsession identifier from the first playback device via the local areanetwork; and after receiving the first session identifier, cause thefirst playback device to play a first audio track from the mediastreaming service by transmitting a first playback request to the firstplayback device, wherein the first playback request comprises (i) thefirst session identifier and (ii) a first playback command that causesat least the first playback device to obtain the first audio track fromthe streaming media service and play the first audio track.
 12. Thecontroller device of claim 11, wherein the validation-key furthercomprises a system identifier corresponding to the first playbackdevice.
 13. The controller device of claim 11, wherein the firstplayback device is a member of a playback system comprising a pluralityof playback devices, and wherein the validation-key comprises a systemidentifier corresponding to the playback system.
 14. The controllerdevice of claim 11, wherein the validation-key further comprises datathat identifies an expiration time.
 15. The controller device of claim11, wherein the first session identifier is associated with anexpiration time.
 16. The controller device of claim 11, wherein thefirst session identifier is associated with an expiration time, andwherein program instructions comprise further program instructionsexecutable by the one or more processors such that the controller deviceis further configured to: before transmitting another playback requestto the first playback device, determine whether a duration of timeremaining before the first session identifier expires is less than athreshold duration of time; and when the duration of time remainingbefore the first session identifier expires is less than the thresholdduration of time, re-transmit the validation-key to the first playbackdevice via the local area network.
 17. The controller device of claim11, wherein the first session identifier is associated with the firstplayback device.
 18. The controller device of claim 11, wherein theprogram instructions executable by the one or more processors such thatthe controller device is configured to transmit the first playbackrequest to the first playback device comprise program instructionsexecutable by the one or more processors such that the controller deviceis configured to transmit a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) requestcomprising a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) header comprising thefirst session identifier.
 19. The controller device of claim 11, whereinprogram instructions comprise further program instructions executable bythe one or more processors such that the controller device is furtherconfigured to: transmit the validation-key to a second playback devicevia the local area network; after transmitting the validation-key to thesecond playback device via the local area network, receive a secondsession identifier from the second playback device via the local areanetwork; and after receiving the second session identifier, cause thesecond playback device to play a second audio track from the mediastreaming service by transmitting a second playback request to thesecond playback device, wherein the second playback request comprises(i) the second session identifier and (ii) a second playback commandthat causes the second playback device to obtain the second audio trackfrom the streaming media service and play the second audio track. 20.The controller device of claim 11, wherein the first playback commandthat causes at least the first playback device to obtain the first audiotrack from the streaming media service and play the first audio trackcomprises one or more playback commands that cause the first playbackdevice to obtain the first audio track from the streaming media serviceand play the first audio track in synchrony with at least a secondplayback device.